Lab Team

Qingyang Liu is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Human Development and Family Science at Syracuse University. Her advisor is Dr. Rachel Razza. She received an M.S. in Educational Psychology and Methodology from the University at Albany, SUNY, and B.A. in Psychology from San Francisco State University B.S. in Applied Psychology from Guangzhou Medical University. Qingyang was a former intern as a Data Analyst at the New York State Office for People with Developmental Disabilities with a range of experience analyzing big datasets with multiple waves.

Qingyang’s broad research interests are to explore the developmental trajectory of self-regulation from early childhood to adolescence. She is specifically interested in examining early contextual factors (i.e., poverty, material hardship, household chaos, parenting) that affect preschooler self-regulation in multiple domains and its long-term functioning on adolescent wellbeing behaviors. Her current research work examines the multidimensional poverty profile effects on the development of children’s self-regulation from a socially ecologically adaptive framework. Qingyang proposes to translate academic research into policy actions to support children’s regulatory behaviors within disadvantaged communities.

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Kristen is a doctoral student in Human Development and Family Science. She holds a bachelor’s degree in biology and an M.S. degree in Nutrition Science, both from Syracuse University.  She is a Registered Dietitian and Certified Lactation Counselor.  Prior to entering the doctoral program, Kristen worked as an outpatient pediatric dietitian at Golisano Children’s Hospital, in private practice providing nutrition counseling and education to children and adults, and as an Adjunct Instructor of Nutrition at Syracuse University and Utica University.  Kristen’s research interests center on infant and early child nutrition and the development of health-related behaviors in children, focusing on the individual, family, and community influences that help to shape them. 

Kelly Green Kearns, ABD, LMHC, NCC, is a Counseling and Counselor Education doctoral candidate in the School of Education. Her cognate is focused on humans’ interactions with food and wellness. While earning her license in mental health counseling, she worked with children in the field using Child Centered Play Therapy. She utilized this professional experience in helping children and families grow while working with this team. In the three years she served on this research team, Kelly has helped to develop the program, implement parent workshops, monitor focus groups, and write up qualitative results. In the fall, Kelly is starting her dream position as a professor at SUNY New Paltz and is excited to bring the findings from this program including mindfulness and the importance of talking about food into the counseling field through teaching and future research. Her dissertation is focused on the related topic of foodways and wellness for female undergraduate students and she hopes to study more populations in the future. Her intention is to increase cross-disciplinary work to best inform counseling practice. For her, working on this team was an honor and a lovely experience in the world of research.

Min Jin is a junior student, currently pursuing a major in psychology and minor in education studies. Her passion lies in the field of children’s behavior therapy, and she has gained valuable work experience at SU Bernice M. Wright Child Development.

Rylee Pepper is a third-year undergraduate student majoring in Nutrition Science and minoring in Psychology on the Pre-Health track. She is a member of the Renée Crown University Honors program and is currently working on her Honors Thesis, where she will be developing a research project studying the impact on well-being that results when people with dietary restrictions must transition to and begin to navigate college life, with ways to provide relief from this stressor. Her career interest is to pursue medical school, and she is involved in a variety of other organizations in and around the SU campus in support of her major and career goals.

Christina McCord is a third-year undergraduate student majoring in Social Work and minoring in Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies. Her career interests include working with children and adolescents in a variety of settings, including private practice and schools. She is very passionate about mental health in children and adolescents and is interested in utilizing mindfulness-based practice when working with clients. 

Kaylynn Kirkman is a first-year undergraduate student majoring in Human Development and Family Science. Her career interests focus on children and adolescents and learning about a wide variety of therapeutic techniques that can be implemented across medical and educational settings. These career goals were fostered by a background in healthcare sciences via a vocational high school program and a certification for canine-assisted therapy. In her free time, Kaylynn loves to spend time with her two dogs Oakley and Luna.

Quinn Gonzalez is a first-year undergraduate student majoring in Nutrition with plans to become a registered dietitian in the future. She is a leadership scholar and a member of the Renée Crown University Honors Program. She volunteers at Crouse Health as well as in the Syracuse City School District and is a member of the Nutrition Education Promotion Association. Her career goals include working in a clinical setting and helping people find access to health and wellness resources. Outside of school, Quinn enjoys ice skating, cooking, and spending time outside with her dogs.

Lexie Lazarus is a third-year undergraduate student majoring in Human Development & Family Science with a minor in Education Studies. She is a member of the Kappa Omicron Nu Honor Society, a Syracuse University Success Scholar, and was selected into the Renée Crown University Honors Program. Lexie’s involvement extends to various campus organizations including OrangeSeeds and being a University 100 campus tour guide. Her career interests include Human Resources and Public Relations. Outside of school, Lexie enjoys traveling, playing tennis, cooking, and spending time with family and friends.

Dr. Caitlin Smith (Ph.D., 2024) is is a 2024 alumna of Syracuse University’s Department of Human Development and Family Science. She is currently an Assistant Professor in the Psychology Department at The University of Texas at Austin. Caitlin is a former public-school teacher and community center coordinator with a range of experience working with youth. Her broad research interests are in the areas of social and community influences on health behaviors and outcomes. Caitlin is particularly interested in studying nutritional access and outcomes across the lifespan, with a focus on racial, socioeconomic, and gender disparities, and exploring existing intervention efforts in this area. Her current work examines children’s fruit and vegetable consumption through a socioecological model, considering child and parental self-efficacy in varying family, school, and neighborhood contexts. Caitlin intends to pursue research that can be translated into practical programmatic and policy initiatives that support the development and maintenance of healthy eating behaviors across the lifespan in a way that combats existing health inequities.

Suzanne Holland (M.S.) is a 2023 M.S. graduate in Human Development and Family Science. Her master thesis is titled “The link between maternal depression and child behavior problems: The moderating role of early temperament” using the Early Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (Baby FACES), a nationally representative descriptive study of Early Head Start. She is currently a union organizer to help workers utilize their collective power to make necessary improvements in the workplace. She also has guest lectured in child development and parenting interventions courses at UT Austin and will be consulting with the Syracuse City School District to aid in increasing and sustaining parent involvement.

Anna Katherine Waters (B.A.) is a 2023 B.A. graduate in Human Development and Family Science. She is currently a graduate student at Syracuse University and is majoring in Marriage and Family Therapy.

Fleur (Ruohan Feng, M.A) is currently a doctoral student in Cognitive and Brain Science at Georgia Institute of Technology, training under Dr. Paul Verhaeghen. She completed a master’s degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at Syracuse University.

Ashley (Xin Hao, B.S.) is a 2023 B.S. graduate in Psychology with a minor in Nutrition. She is currently a research assistant at CogT lab at Stanford University, training under Dr. Feng Vankee Lin.

Dr. Staceyann Reid (Ph.D., 2021) is a recent alumna of Syracuse University’s Department of Human Development and Family Science. She is currently a SUNY PRODiG Postdoctoral Fellow at SUNY Oswego, where she teaches in their Psychology Department. Dr. Reid is presently involved with a project at SUNY Oswego exploring how participation in an MBSR program impacts undergraduate students’ levels of self-compassion, mindfulness, and perceived stress. She remains involved with the SELF Regulation Lab continuing to work on projects started during her graduate career.
Dr. Reid is also a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in the state of NY. She has primarily worked with children, adolescents, and young adults as a counselor, and this work remains one of her biggest passions.